Journaling has always been a major part of my life. Though it started as a middle school diary filled with school crushes, it has turned into a way to express bottled-up emotions, track daily habits and encourage my aspirations. Not only has journaling been a great outlet for my thoughts and feelings, but it has also encouraged me to put down my phone and focus on my emotional, mental and physical well-being. Though I occasionally take a break from it, it is nice to look back on my progress in terms of habits, mentality and writing skills. Journaling has allowed me to express how I feel, manage stress, encourage a healthier lifestyle, support awareness of my thinking and emotions, gain self-confidence, inspire myself and feel proud looking back at the challenges I have faced.
Reduces Stress and Anxiety
Journaling has allowed me to write down obsessive worries. It has been a major way to release stress-inducing thoughts, clear my conscience and release pressure placed on me. Writing down scattering feelings in my brain has been therapeutic and has allowed me to validate my negative emotions. After a traumatic event, I often use journaling to process trauma, track and identify triggers and learn how my experience impacts everyday life.
Remember Experiences and Process Emotions
Looking back on my journal provides me with an infinite amount of comfort. My stacks of journals are filled with experiences that provided joy and caused pain, allowing me to reflect and learn from my experiences. Journaling has been a way to embrace positive and negative emotions. It allowed me to engage with my thoughts, look at situations more objectively and write down possible solutions to problems. Journaling has been an amazing opportunity to reduce overwhelming emotions and make them easier to manage and understand.
Helps Achieve Goals
Journaling has allowed me to write down and track my daily and weekly intentions. It has involved writing a to-do list and making habit trackers. A to-do list often contains daily activities such as preparing for class, grocery shopping and paying bills and habit trackers include water intake, skincare and exercising. This has helped with prioritizing, managing stress, figuring out my next steps and reviewing progress. Journaling has helped create a practical plan by breaking down large tasks and goals into smaller achievable chunks.
Discover Myself
Being able to write down ideas in a safe space without judgment has been extremely liberating. For me, it has been a place to foster thinking, brainstorm and become inspired. Remember, focus on the process, not the final product! Keeping a journal all these years has given me the opportunity to discover my voice, become more confident and express myself. It has allowed me to be vulnerable and grow my interests and passions.
Overall, journaling has always meant self-discovery to me. Whether I’m writing about a significant experience that I want to remember every detail about or exploring a topic that truly bothers me, journaling has meant learning so much about myself.